Cruising '96.

Stress Buster

Pamper Yourself On A Floating Spa--but Know The Cost

January 14, 1996|By Arline Bleecker, Orlando Sentinel.

Hamlet's line "Ay, there's the rub" could easily refer to massages aboard cruise ships. While just about every other service on cruises comes as part of an all-inclusive package, spa treatments cost extra.

In the pursuit of the ultimate in on-board pampering, passengers might drop as much money on a massage as they can in the casino.

But considering the number of people who choose cruising as an antidote for stress, massages and spa treatments at sea do make sense. Carnival, for example, reports more than 50 percent of its passengers--more than a half-million annually--were lured aboard just for its fleetwide Nautica spas.

Spas come with the territory; they are ubiquitous on cruise ships. You can have your body buffed with seaweed paste or blitzed with massages devised to relax body parts you never knew you had.

Self-indulgent spa offerings aren't for women only either: Princess Cruises offers at least a half-dozen treatments designed just for men, plus hairstyling and manicure services. Men aboard the Radisson Diamond can indulge in a 45-minute energizing facial specifically designed to counter the harsh effects of shaving. And QE2's "Mostly Men" package goes for broke with a $379 package that includes a body-brush treatment, one jet blitz, one seaweed hydro bath, three 50-minute massages, one self-heating mud pack, one cathodermie facial and a manicure.

Among Radisson's more than 25 massage offerings is a couples "teach-in," a 90-minute private lesson in basic massage techniques to teach you and your partner to enjoy the benefits of massage at home. The $130 class includes a take-home "starter kit" with instructions and body massage oil.

Shipboard spa services often are on a par with top salons shoreside. Besides saunas and steam rooms, spas offer aromatherapy, massage, facials, manicure and pedicure services. Nowadays, though, spa indulgences have become so exotic that the uninitiated may need a glossary to figure out what some entail. In fact, the spa staff on Carnival demystifies them with demonstrations held onstage in its ships' huge auditoriums. During one such gathering, my husband and I learned that holistic massages use herbal extracts, aromatherapy massages incorporate acupressure to stimulate drainage of the lymphatic system. And Ionithermie is a souped-up treatment with heated sea kelp, ivy and clay that penetrates the skin to provide the "ultimate" in detoxification.

If the list of things to do on your cruise includes one of the many therapeutic spa options, be sure you know what you'll be paying for. Shipboard spas are private concessions that also make money by selling add-ons. My husband was once lulled--midmassage--into accepting "a bit more extra heat," and wound up paying $50 extra.

Perhaps a clue to the success of such spa staff salesmanship lies in one ship's spa product order form: If you buy more than $100 of massage elixirs, the shipping is free. Tips also may be automatically added to the treatment price.

Virtually every spa afloat is run by the Steiner Group (a London-based company), though California's famed Golden Door Spa services the Royal Viking Sun, Sagafjord, Vistafjord and Sea Goddess.

And even though spa concessions are the same on most ships, prices for the same service may vary. For example, a one-hour herbal therapy massage on Radisson is $74; the same service provided by the same company on a Princess ship is $66. And 25 minutes in the Nouveau Yu (a futuristic "health capsule" in which you lie in an oval-shaped chamber surrounded by soothing aroma and sounds) runs $37 on the Radisson. Same machine/different ship is only $25 on Carnival's Sensation. Even so, to keep things competitive, Steiner frequently customizes exclusive treatments for different ships.

DETAILS ON SPA TREATMENTS

Here are some of the spa treatments available at sea:

- Crystal Symphony's "Aqua Meditation" is unique in the industry, according to the line, although it also will be aboard Celebrity's Century when it debuts. For $25, your prone body is caressed by three swirling, warm-water shower heads, gently massaging the front and back of the body for 10 minutes on each side.